Alice will have your students in wonderland as they use this innovative 3D programming environment targeted to middle and high school students. Be the director of a movie or the creator of a video game. 3D objects appear in an on-screen virtual world imagined by the creator and move around according to the directions you give by dragging and dropping tiles. The drag and drop technique provides a more engaging programming experience for first time programmers. Alice provides exposure to object-oriented programming. Alice has practical value for students to learn how computers think. The instructions correspond to standard statements in a production oriented programming language, such as Java, C++, and C#. While using Alice, programmers are able to immediately see how their animation program runs and the behavior of the objects in their animation. Manipulate camera angles and lighting to make further enhancements. Alice is a revolutionary method to teach programming, especially to first-time learners. It allows students to understand programming concepts, a 21st century skill.

In the Classroom

Be sure to check with your Technology Department, as many districts require authorization to download or install new applications. Plan ahead as you request that this application be installed on your classroom or laptop cart computers. Alice provides an opportunity for students to create and learn how to problem solve. Subscribe to the teacher list to receive updates and integration ideas for Alice. The purpose of this list is to provide an easy way to ask questions and collaborate with the Alice teaching community. View and use activities to increase programming knowledge and the use of the Alice program.

Students quickly catch on to Alice when allowed to play and easily see what they can make from it. Provide a simple assignment with defined rules/tasks to learn the tools as well as the drag and drop interface. Have students use a storyboard to organize their creation in order to keep tabs on students and their creations. Build games to review curricular material for assessments. Have students create videos or digital stories to bring a subject to life. Teachers of gifted can turn their students loose to create animations about individual interests or research projects.

Transform your students' web-based research with Scrible. Highlight and annotate web pages and easily save, share, organize, and collaborate on Internet-based research. Scrible offers browser bookmarklets for Firefox, Chrome, Safari, and Internet Explorer. With the Scrible bookmarklet installed, when you're on a page just click the bookmarklet to launch a menu of bookmarking tools. Access your work right where you left off from editing. Use the option to format your bibliographies as you bookmark. Compile your article clippings into one package. Students may sign up using their academic email address. (If your school's domain name is not recognized as "academic," sign up for the free account and send a "feedback" email explaining that your email address is that of a student.) Student Scrible accounts have double the storage capacity of the standard free account. Educators sign up for the Basic Edition and then click the feedback link to let Scrible know you're an educator. They will set you up with a special edition which includes the same features. Work smarter, not harder with Scrible. Saving your bookmarks with Scrible allows you to easily go back to review a site, and you'll see immediately why you bookmarked that site.

In the Classroom

Your students' online research will be efficient and effective with Scrible. Students can take notes on their bookmarks. They only need to bookmark the part of the website they need for their assignment. Students can collaborate with peers on their research. Post articles and documents online for your students to highlight and annotate. Bookmark this tool on your website or blog for your students to access in or outside of the classroom. Use Scrible to annotate professional development articles or to highlight important information for your students. The best part? It will instantly create your bibliography for you!

Use polltogo to create polls for user response during a meeting or class time. Connect with your audience in many ways. Create a question and select type of answers, how long the poll will last, password or not, and more options. Receive notifications about your poll via your email. Each poll is free for twenty people to vote. Tweet about polltogo and receive another thirty credits so thirty more people can vote. Choose to receive results (via email) after every vote or at the end of the voting period. Interim and final results can also be viewed online. Another great feature is embedding the results link into a PowerPoint or Keynote slide to project results during a presentation. Polltogo is a device-agnostic voting tool and will auto-adapt to display on any mobile or desktop device.

In the Classroom

Use this tool easily in your Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) classroom since all students will be able to access it for free, no matter what device they have. One of the question choices for polltogo is "Feedback" which is perfect for formative assessment or asking what students need help with after a lesson. Use this site to vote for correct answers in math class, project ideas for science or social studies, social issues in current events, and practically any other subject area. Encourage students to incorporate polls during class presentations as a test to see who is listening or for questions the audience might have. Use polltogo to make parent polls and post on a class website to keep the lines of communication open.

Create diagrams, flowcharts, organizational charts, and more using ProcessOn. After a short registration process, create your diagram using templates provided or start from scratch. Creation tools are similar to Microsoft Word setup, allowing easy personalization with colors, shapes, text, images, and more. Easily collaborate using tools such as an online chat. Click the Invite Collaborators link to send an invitation. Save files on the site or download directly to your computer.

In the Classroom

Use this site to create your own charts or diagrams to share on your projector or interactive whiteboard. Challenge students to create their own charts using this tool. Create charts for literature that you are reading in class, pinpointing the plot, conflict/resolution, and more. Create a diagram to highlight important dates in an individual's life or even dates in a war. Students could use this site for a project on any topic: science, government, history, literature, and many others. Have students create study guides using this site. Share or embed the BEST maps on your class website. One of the best aspects of this site is that students can collaborate online for group projects. Learning Support teachers can encourage small groups to create study guides together, reinforcing their knowledge as they discuss and work together.

Pamela is a downloadable software program that enables you to record the audio and video portions of Skype calls. Follow prompts to download on your computer. The FREE version includes 15 minutes of free recording time, and options to save in several formats such as mp3 and WAV files. This is a Windows only program.This site includes advertising.

In the Classroom

Use Pamela to record shorter Skype calls to save for future use. Embed and share recordings on your class website or blog. Share recordings with absentee students. Download the Professional or Business version for 30 days free use to access additional features such as longer recording times.

Debate with others or vote on topics of social and political interest on Quibl. This site offers an open debate platform. See the best of what both sides of an issue have to offer and then decide where to put your comment or argument. There are guidelines for every submission, and moderators review every topic submission and all comments. Find a debate via search. Browse the categories you are interested in, sort the debate with filters, or use the map and the regions that are interesting to you. Though Quibl is monitored, the general public has access so content may not be appropriate for all students. Preview before sharing in a classroom.

In the Classroom

To prepare students for Common Core Assessments on evidence and arguments, have them choose a popular topic on Quibl. Challenge students to research it so they can provide evidence for their stance when writing about their opinion or to refute another's. Use a whole-class account with a teacher email or individual student accounts, depending on your school policies and access. Science and social studies teachers can use this site for current events. When students are interested in a topic, access Quibl to see if there is a debate about it. If not, you may want to consider creating your own. In language arts, show the students both sides of an issue, then have them come up with an issue they care about that is not on Quibl. Have them write about both sides of an issue. Many students will have weak writing on the side opposite their opinion, and this is a teachable moment for word choice and phrasing. Have your students write about these "ready made" topics before showing them what others have to say. Once finished, they can read what others are thinking and add ideas to their opinion. Also, this would be an ideal time for them to look at the opposing opinion, decide which is the strongest point, and then teach them how to address concerns of others in their writing. For example, they can concede it is a valid point and then counter with another strong argument. If you teach French, give your students practice reading French by clicking on the FR tab. Though Quibl is monitored, the general public has access so be sure to review any issue before presenting it to your students.

Use this free tool to search a specific hashtag on all Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram posts using that hashtag. (A hashtag is simply a way of marking the general topic or audience for a tweet or Facebook update.) See all information in one place and then create a tagboard with that hashtag name. Send the link to the tagboard to others for them to follow. Refresh your tagboard to see all new Tweets and Posts. New to Twitter? Read more about Twitter at TeachersFirst's Twitter for Teachers page.

In the Classroom

Use this tool to follow any political event such as The State of the Union address, elections, and other major events. Get a perspective of people in the country or the World by identifying the different responses and viewpoints from those in other locations. Compare viewpoints with those of the formal media. Follow any major news event or items related to the event (reactions to the Super Bowl commercials?) Follow major achievements, world events, and more. Use on an Interactive whiteboard or projector to introduce a class topic or follow current events. Have students submit a record of tweets that show their learning over time. Students can create an Infographic or other multimedia presentation about reflections and information learned from the Tagboard. Have students make a mash-up using one of the many TeachersFirst Edge Tools reviewed here. For your own professional learning, create a Tagboard to follow one of the many educational Twitter chat hashtags listed here.

Disappointed that your favorite book or TV series has ended? Satisfy your craving on FanFiction. Discover FanFiction stories written by up-and-coming writers based on your favorite comic, cartoon, movie, book, television show, or other genre. Read and vote for your favorites or even write your own. Whether you are a fan of fiction or like to dabble with writing, take a look at FanFiction. Fanfiction authors write new stories about characters from their favorite books (movies, TV series, etc.). Read to your heart's content and leave a comment without even signing in. To create and submit your own writing you need to sign up with an email. Click on the genre of your choice to get started! This site can be accessed in a variety of languages. Click the small "mobile forum" icon at the top to use on mobile iOs or Android devices.This site includes advertising.

In the Classroom

It is amazing how students will polish their writing for an authentic audience! Demonstrate how to use FanFiction with your projector or interactive whiteboard. Show students the different genres and have them read a selection or two from an amateur writer to see how it works. Have student pairs or trios work together on a piece for a favorite book. There is also a miscellaneous category you could use to have students add a different ending or write from a different point of view based on any short story you use in class. They can also submit in the poetry category. Use 121 Writing reviewed here to proof student writing and make suggestions (verbally if your choose to) before they submit to FanFiction. For students to develop and polish their writing skills, use a program such as Slick Write reviewed here. Create a FanFiction account with a class email and have students work on their piece using a nickname or acronym. Since FanFiction can be accessed in several languages, this program would work well in an ESL/ELL classroom.

This tool creates collection boards for video resources and is a tool for knowledge seeking. Review and choose good videos to collect and curate on various boards. Share video resources or whole boards with others. Click on a video to watch or hover over it and click on "Collect." You can also search Zeeik for specific items by using the search bar. Many of the videos are hosted on YouTube. View the videos within Zeeik to bypass the YouTube comments -- which may or may not be appropriate. This tool is still in Beta, and more features are planned. If your district blocks YouTube, some of the videos may not be viewable. You could always view the videos at home and bring them to class "on a stick" to share. Use a tool such as KeepVid reviewed here to download the videos from YouTube.

In the Classroom

Find how-to videos or videos on a curriculum topic in this tool. Create a Zeeik for your class to use to view videos selected by you for any topic and in any subject. In primary grades, create a Zeeik for students to access as a center and answer questions or complete a drawing about the topic. Create a class account for students to curate videos for the rest of the class to comment and rate them. Share your Zeeik with students and parents by placing the link on your web page. ESL/ELL teachers will like the ease of collecting videos to reinforce language skills.

Use this free interactive mapping site to make additions to Google Maps, incorporating other data and maps with them. Add topographic maps and spatial or environmental data. This is an easy tool for adding symbols and icons or for adding a drawing on a Google map. Find many of the simple tools along the top of the map. You can do something as simple as adding text labels or shading a region. Add data to the map using the tools below the map. Create a mashup of KML, GPX (easily imported from Garmin), WMS and GEORSS data sources. This video explains many of the features of Geokov. Please note this video is hosted on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, then it may not be viewable. You could always view the video at home and bring it to class "on a stick" to share. Use a tool such as KeepVid reviewed here to download the video from YouTube.

In the Classroom

Take a virtual field trip through the map maker. Explore landforms and other terrain features from Google Earth and topographic maps. Easily create maps for field trips, presentations, classroom activities and more. Create a shade relief topographic map of any region. Doing an environmental study of an area or region? Find the region in this tool first and add the necessary information for classroom discussion or presentation. Use one of the many TeachersFirst Presentation Tools to present information learned. Tie information from literature, stories, history, and other sources to add value and interest to the maps.

Dictionary of Numbers is an extension for the Chrome web browser that helps make sense of numbers found on the web and puts them in human terms. For example, highlight the term 8 million on a web page and Dictionary of Numbers offers the comparison to the population of New York City. Use Dictionary of Numbers for your own search too. Just type in any number to receive a term comparing to something relatable. Click Download Now and follow the easy directions to get started. The introduction video is hosted on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, then it may not be viewable. You could always view the video at home and bring it to class "on a stick" to share. Use a tool such as KeepVid reviewed here to download the video from YouTube.

In the Classroom

Install (or request installation) on classroom computers for student use when working with or reading statistics or numbers. Display on your interactive whiteboard (or projector) to help students compare and relate numbers to physical objects or similar items. Challenge students to add their own number "annotations" to passages they read, especially when doing close reading of informational texts. Make number sense a routine part of reading.

Create a group video chat with anyone, anywhere! (A Google membership is required.) Choose Google members from your own contact list or invite others. See who is currently talking in the Hangout via a display of the name and the video of the person. Thumbnail videos of the others also in the Hangout appear along the bottom of the screen. Easily toggle between rear and front facing cameras, turning off video or microphone, or ending the Hangout. Broadcast a Hangout through your Circles in Google Plus. Use Hangouts for more than video calls. Hangouts are also a great way to hold a chat, embedding images and documents to share with others participating in the Hangout. Be sure to try the Hangouts mobile app, available for Android and iOS. Unlike the web version, the app currently does not show which of your contacts are online. The introduction video requires YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, then it may not be viewable. You could always view the video at home and bring it to school "on a stick" to share. Use a tool such as KeepVid reviewed here to download the video from YouTube.

In the Classroom

Start a Hangout and invite others from your Circles or Google contacts. Connect whole classrooms across the country for book clubs. Connect experts such as authors and scientists to classrooms of children. Create connected learning experiences with other students, especially those in older grades. Connect world language classes to classes in other countries. Students interested in graphic design can connect with an expert or artist far away and share current work in a virtual critique. Connect students with mentors or older students for help with homework. Teachers can hold "office hours" for homework help and asking questions. Whole buildings can collaborate and share professional development with others in their own district and beyond! Be sure to connect with other educators on your own and enjoy the professional development that also exists within the Hangouts! Be sure to create Circles within Google Plus to meet any concerns with your administration regarding privacy.

Otter is a website maker specifically designed for educators to make simple sites. Features allow for easy homework uploads. There is a class-specific classroom calendar creator, a class announcement sender to email or text, and document storage. Register (with email) to begin creating your site. Add school information and upload a profile picture if desired. Use links to add classes to your site, homework, announcements, and more. Students may submit assignments via Twitter, Facebook, or email accounts.This site includes advertising.

In the Classroom

If your school does not provide such a space, Otter is perfect for teachers to create a simple class page for interaction with parents and accessibility by students. Manage your classroom with this tool. Use as a class hub to manage documents, photos, and files. Be sure to share your link so students and parents can access both in and out of the classroom. Use Otter in teacher ed programs to show future teachers how a website can enhance instruction.

Talky is a chat and video sharing application that is easy to set up and use. Features include screen sharing, group video chat with up to six participants, and privacy setting options. Begin by naming your conversation. Be sure to allow access to your computer's camera and microphone when prompted. Share the link with participants to allow access to the meeting. Use links to lock the room to anyone without a password and to share your screen. Current settings only allow use of Talky with Chrome and Firefox. Screen sharing is available with Chrome only. Be sure to read the helpful information found at the bottom of the site for Chrome screen sharing settings. Best part of all... no membership or sign-up is necessary to use this tool.

In the Classroom

Use Talky to host tutoring for small groups of students from any computer! Share with students as a resource for collaborating on group projects from home. Use Talky to set up an online interview with authors located across the country, veterans who can discuss their personal experiences with war, or experts to discuss careers in their field. Also use this site to meet up with absent students as needed. If a parent can't make a conference, meet online using Talky to share student work, progress, and more.

Share YouTube videos in a nicer, "uncluttered" way with NicerTube. Convert the usual YouTube share page into an attractive, easy to view page. Choose your design option. Enter the url for any video. Choose your background from available options such as a web page, solid color, or other design. Complete your design, copy the url, and share the link as you desire. For an example, see one we created here. If your district blocks YouTube, this tool may or may not work with your school filters. Test it with our sample before going to the work to make your own.This site includes advertising.

In the Classroom

Use NicerTube anytime you wish to share YouTube without all of the "clutter" or just spice up a presentation! This is great to use for your more easily distracted students! Share the link with your students for sharing their videos in presentations. Use your NicerTube created links within your classroom presentations to spice up video presentation at any time!

Put any story on the map using Tour Builder (by Google). A Gallery shares examples. You would be wise to preview the Gallery before sharing since these are created by the general public. To create a tour, choose locations, add text, images, and videos to create a story to share with the world. Add up to 25 items to each pinned location. Options include three different types of storylines. You can decide how others view your story/tour and how your story will progress. Linear tales move the story along a line. The hub option tells the story from a central location. You can disable lines completely so stories are not tied to a specific sequence or timeline. Finished stories default to private view. You may share privately with friends and family or make public for anyone to view. The Google Earth plugin and a Google account are required to use Tour Builder. Some of the introduction/explanation videos are hosted on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, then they may not be viewable. You could always view the videos at home and bring them to class "on a stick" to share. Use a tool such as KeepVid reviewed here to download the videos from YouTube.

In the Classroom

Create a simple tour to share (or find one in the gallery). Share the tour on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Create tours of events from history, famous battles, scientific discoveries, biographies, and much more. The possibilities are endless. Create a timeline of famous people or a hub of locations related to a topic such as toxic waste sites or habitats for a certain animal. Tour settings for Shakespeare plays or an author's life. Tour Van Gogh's painting sites or map landforms such as glaciers. Have students who have Google accounts build a Tour of important events in their lives (or use a teacher-controlled account). In world language classes, create cultural tours in your new language. Scroll through the gallery for ideas on how others have used Tour Builder. You may just find some neat tours to share in the gallery.

Have fun creating sentences or short messages (like tweets) using drag and drop words at Twitter Magnets! Twitter Magnets calls them poems, though the length limit is a real challenge for poets! Choose from the words offered. Drag and drop the magnets into the message area at the bottom -- up to 120 characters. The tool keeps a character count for you. Need different words? Click the swap words link for new choices. Click submit to view your message/poem and decide whether to submit to Twitter Magnet's Twitter feed or not. You can also link to send from your own Twitter account. Note that clicking to see the Twitter Magnets feed will show you "messages" and poems created by the general public. Steer clear or preview to be sure these are appropriate in your setting.

In the Classroom

Create a message or "poem" of the day as a class to send from your class Twitter account. Use as a center activity or have student groups create their own messages about what you have learned today in any subject area class. Have ELL students create simple messages to reinforce language skills. If you don't have a Twitter account, just have students create offline messages. Take a quick screen shot, then write, illustrate, and share on your classroom bulletin board! Generate creative messages as a class to use as writing prompts. Have students tell the story (or nonfiction news account) about what caused the message. Looking for more ways to use Twitter in the classroom? Read more about Twitter at TeachersFirst's Twitter for Teachers page. You can also use this site as a tool to teach about digital citizenship and the etiquette of tweets.

Pocket is a bookmarking application that syncs across all of your devices to save online articles or videos for later viewing. Saving is simple. Download the bookmarklet on your computer or the Pocket app to your mobile device. When you see something to save for later viewing, click the share button to send to your Pocket account. View at anytime (even offline). Sort by content type such as article, video, or text. Add tags to organize content as you wish. Pocket integrates with many other online tools, such as Twitter and Flipboard. Share articles using social networking or email links to the Pocket app. Although this site is recommended for all grade levels, younger students would only be able to use this site if the collection was completed by an adult. Click to view the short introduction video to learn more.

In the Classroom

Use Pocket professionally to collect and share websites, videos, and images for lessons and units. Use Pocket to share sites with colleagues, parents, and students. Share this site with older students to use to save resources they find for research. Demonstrate how to use Pocket and share with students as a resource for collaborating on group projects. Be sure to talk about using tags to organize things so they don't end up with a giant "pocketful" of tangled "stuff."

"Create and Discover New Adventures on the Go" with Mosey. Find and create tours of your favorite cities, restaurants, the outdoors, and more. A "Mosey" is similar to a collection of placemarkers with your own notes and comments for Google Maps, but you do not need to be a Google aficionado to make and share one! Create a Mosey account to build your own journey including pictures and descriptions. Type in the name of any location. Mosey lists possible addresses to choose from. Add a picture from their library and a short description or comments on what to do there. Do this for each stop in your journey to create you own Mosey that includes map pins and location descriptions. Share using the url offered when finishing your Mosey. This tool is currently available to use on the web version or to "carry with you" on iOs devices. View an example (here) made in less than 10 minutes!

In the Classroom

Share some of the ready-made presentations on your projector or interactive whiteboard. Search their current presentations for those that would be useful in your class. Use Mosey to create virtual field trips to anywhere. Create Moseys for your hometown featuring interesting places to visit. Create a Mosey with state capitals, lakes and landforms, or important battlefields. Create Moseys for any mapping projects. If you are lucky enough to go on real field trips, create a Mosey telling students and chaperones what to do at each location on the trip, and have students make their own when you return! World language students can create Moseys for cultural sites -- and use their language in the comments!

Quickly remove backgrounds from images using Clipping Magic. Choose an image from your computer. (A photo with sharp lines and clear features works best.) View the instructions to begin. Outline the portion you want to keep in green, them remove the background with red. Adjust the brush size and background color using tools provided. Save and download when finished. Tutorials will help you master the skills, and examples make the tool easy to understand. Why remove backgrounds? You can "place" an object in another background setting or create drag and drop activities without confusing backgrounds around the image. You can also combine or montage images more easily. This tool is currently in Beta. Sign up during the beta period to continue to receive free services from this site.This site includes advertising.

In the Classroom

Use Clipping Magic to create masks for classroom plays or activities. Share with students for use with projects to create and combine images without busy backgrounds. For example, create pictures of presidents, castles, or plants for use with any report or on slides for a presentation. Take pictures of students; then remove the background. Save images for use throughout the year in hall displays, bulletin boards, on reward certificates, etc.